Silo-reinforcement.



S. E. ANDERSON.

v SILO REINFORCEMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 16, 1913. v

1,077,949, Patented 1x1014 913.

SIGURD E. ANDERSON, OF DES MOINES, IOWA.

SILO-REINFORCEMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 4, 1913.

Application filed June 16, 1913. Serial No. 773,862.

ment, of which the following is a specification. 7 I r It is the object of the aresent invention to provide improved rein orcing means for silos and more particularly for providing the reinforcement at and near the door opening, the arrangement being such that an adequate number of tie-rods may encircle the entire silo and may cooperate not only in giving rigidity to the structure as a Whole but alsoin giving firmness and security at and near the door openings.

WVhile my invention is of general application in silo construction, it has been found particularly advantageous in connection with silos built up out of cement staves or blocks I for with such a construction,- the staves are relatively short and the difficulty of securing rigidity and air-tight construction' are of a different character from those nia(le \vitl1 any wood stave construction.

According to my present invention, a

' metal frame is provided of a shape and size to completely encircle the door opening and so positioned and constructed to strengthen and "reinforce the edges of the opening wall at the same time afiording ready means for-attachment to a hoop encircling the entire silo'with the objects in mind of stiffening the silo at a zone, where a hoop could not ordinarily be placed and of stiffening the door-with means tied in as the main silo reinforcement. member'itsclf may tion put in place from the inside and having attaching means of usual form for gripping the'metal edges of the frame embodied in the present invention.

The details and further objects of the invention will be better understood from the following detailed description which is to be taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein- F gure 1 illustrates a section of a cement or concrctcstave silo with two dooropcnings' reinforced, the doors themselves being removed to expose the dark interior of the silo. Fig. 9. is a fragmentary section through one of the door'openings. Fig. 3 is a detail of the hoop attachment, and

. high and a part of. The door be of the usual construcditional stiffening becomes Fig. 4 is aperspective view of one of the door opening reinforcements.

The silo here illustrated is built up of cement or concrete staves l shaped at their edges as shown in Fig. 2 so that they will fit together with tight' joints somewhat in the nature of tonguing and grooving. The structure may be built up to any desired height and with many more door openings than appear'in Fig. 1. i

The portion of the silo wherein the door openmgs are located is preferably built up not of narrow staves as throughout the body of the silo, but of wide blocks 2 as'wide for 1n stance,-as three of the staves and shaped witlropenlngs so positioned that-when these large blocks are set one aboveanother, there w ll be formed an opening say three feet two feet broad. Preferably'these blocks are U-shaped and two of them alone are necessary for each door openin In other words the broad U-sliaped bloc is are placed with their openings contiguous to one another. It is to such a construction that the reinforcement hereinafter disclosed is particularly adapted.

The reinforcement itself is illustrated in perspective in of iron or steel bands 3 and 4 bent at their ends as shown and connected together at their ends by angle irons 5 and 6, each of which is bent back at its end portions 7 and Fig. 4 and comprises a pair' 8 for more ready and secure attachment to the adjacent end of the metal strip. The

strip itself may be offset at 9 and rivetedface of the base portion T directly to the outer veering angle 3 ates 5 and 6 is in general of hexagonal form and its inner face can lie directly against the wall of: the silo throughoutthe entire extent of the frame and so by direct contact can reinforce the silo throughout a wide area. By giving to the angle plates 5 and 6 a lateral or-tr'ans verse bend, not only is a secure seat afforded for the riveted and offset ends of the bands 3 and 4 but the corners of the hexagonal, frame are materially strengthened and stiffened and owing to the heavy strains applied to the frame at these points", this ada feature of importance; The outstanding edge or face of the angle plate is perforated to receive the end of a tie-rod'10'thi'eaded on its end to receive an adjusting nut and encircling the silo and adjust ably secured to the other side of the frame by a ti htening and adjusting nut 12. It is the function of this tic-rod or hoop it) to reinforce the silo staves 5 through the entire girth of the cylinder and it. is also its function to hold the reinforcing frame in place and to give to it slitl'ness and security of p sition. The adjusting nuts ll and [2 permit a variation in the tension on the tie-rod and also allow for lateral shifting of the frame, with respect to the door opening so that an easy means is alt'orded for initially bringing the frame into correct ahuement with the opening and for keeping it in aliuement at all times irrespective of' such changes as might go on in the silo due to settling or ago.

To prevent possible collapse of the frame under the heavy pull of the tie-rod 10, still"- euiug braces lit and It are provided, these preferably being in the form of heavy rods llattened at. their ends for attachment to the uppt and lower corners of the frame by rivets If as shown in Fig. 4. This flattening of the ends in fact oll sets the rod with respect to the silo wall so that the inner edge of the rods may lie directly in contact with the cement and yet their tlattened ends may be spaced from the cement by a distance equal tothe thickness of the metal strips 3 still'en those edges and strengthen them to resist the strong outward thrust of the door nn-ticnlarly when the ensilage is green and is fermenting under which conditions the hydrostatic and gas pressure on the inside 40 maybe very high,

The door itself not shown in the drawings may be of usual construction fitted into the otl'set seats 16 of Fig. 2 and extending through between rods 13' and 14 and provided on its outer face with suitable tightening means and clasps for gripping the rods l3 and it to hold the door firmly to its seat in the concrete.

It will be seen that with the construction above disclosed the silo is adequately reinforced even around the zone in which each door opening lies and-yet no tie-rod crosses the door opening or obstructs in any way the free removal of ensilage throu 11 that opening. The reinforcing fname stittens the wide blocks which encircle each opening and may overlap onto the adjacent stares making the structure around the door as strong or stronger and even more rigid than parts of the silo remote therefrom. In this respect the reinforcing frame here disclosed and its mode of att'aclnnent to the structure is particularly :nlvantageous when used in connection with a cement or concrete stave silo as herein set forth, although it may be used to advantage in other relations as will be apparent to those skilled in theart.

The various details of construction and arrangement of parts may be changed and the construction may he variously modified without departing from the spirit of the invention as dctined by'the appended claims. Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters latent is:

1. In a silo having a door opening, a metal frame of hexagonal form adapted to seat against the silo wall and reinforced with braces positioned to lie along the edges of a door opening, and means for attaching a tightening rod to opposite edges of said frame.

2. In a silo having a door opening, a rigid metal frame adapted to completely encircle a door opening and reinforce all four of its edges, said metal frame having upstanding plates adapted for adjustable attachment to the ends of a tightening rod encircling said silo.

3. In a silo having a rectangular door opening, a rigid metal frame shaped to completely encircle said openingand reinforce it on all four of its edges, said fame having its sides extended outward for adjustable attachment to the ends of a reinforcing silo tie-rod.

4. In a silo having a rectangular door opening, a metal frame of hexagonal form reinforcing the top and bottom edges of said opening, stiffening bars crossing said frame and shaped to lie against the side edges of said opening, and upstanding plates at the opposite sides of said frame perforated to receive the ends of a tie-rod encircling the silo.

5. A reinforcing frame for silo doors comprising a pair of metal bands connected together at their ends b angle plates and bent. to hexagonal outline and reinforcing bars connecting said bands to stiffen the frame, said bars being positioned to lie directly against the edges of a door opening when said frame is in position, and perforations through the upstanding edges of said angle plates for receiving and adjustably securing the ends of a silo encircling tie-rod.

6. A silo door frame adapted to reinforce the door opening at all of its edges and comprising a pair of metal bands connected together at their ends with angle plates bent transversely to receive the offset endsof said bands, the structure so formed being of hexagonal outline and shaped to lie directly in contact with the outer face of the silo, means for securing the ends of a tie-rod to the upstanding edges of said angle plates, and reinforcing bars connecting said bands and having their ends offset to allow the bars to contact directly with the silo wall at the opposite edges of the door openin ewness Q 7. The combination of s silo well built up nected. with the sieies of said hexaigonal I of cement slabs and having a 1001' opening frame to stiffen the wails of the silo in aline- 5; formed between a pair oi wide blocks, of a. ment with the door opening and to hold said 15 hexagonal metal frame completely encirclingframe in its reinforcing posltion with re-w said 001' opening and lying (iirectiy in conspect to the edges of the doc: opening. toot with the silo wall at the top and bottom In Witness whereof I hereunto subscribe edges of said opening and. exmnding latermy name to this specification jnthe presence ally far enough to reinforce en edjecent of two witnesses. e I stave; of cross hers in said hexagonal frame 7 SIGURD E. ANVERSOE. lying in reinforcing position at the eo'lges of Witnesses: 4 the door opening, and s rod encircling said BEN P. Comma, I V

silo and hevmg 1ts ends adjustebly con- Ann) (n 

